The Power of Antiquity in the Making of Modern Egypt (Free Virtual Lecture)
By Harvard Museums of Science & Culture and Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East
In 19th-century Egypt, state power was closely tied to control of antiquities and labor. Wendy Doyon explores this dynamic during the rule of Mehmed Ali and his successors in this free virtual talk.
.: Thu, April 21 2022 6pm – 7pm.
Ages: Adults.
Free!
Location
- Only virtual (online or over the phone).
Additional information
Wendy Doyon, Historian of Archaeology and Modern Egypt
Ancient Egypt conjures images of pharaonic temples, tombs, and pyramids, and perhaps, even the familiar illustrations from children’s books and magazines showing kilted workers on the Nile toiling away on their kings’ great monuments. But what is the relationship between these images—along with the deep history they evoke and the processes of discovery that made them visible—and the history of modern Egypt? In this talk, Wendy Doyon will discuss the relationship between state, archaeology, and labor in Mehmed (or Muhammad) Ali’s Egypt—an autonomous khedival, or viceregal, state within the late Ottoman Empire—and explain how the power of the Egyptian state in the nineteenth century was built, in large part, on the creation of modern antiquities land and the organization of Egyptian workers as state assets controlled by Mehmed Ali Pasha and his dynasty-building successors.
Presented by Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East and Harvard Museums of Science & Culture
Last updated March 30, 2022.